I come across the post signed “Boy, 20” on one of the many online forums where we can pose questions and get more or less helpful answers.
Read this article in Norwegian on Arbeidsliv i Norden
This time I pause and read on:
“Hi, I am a student who works 50 per cent in a grocery store. I feel that my boss mistrusts me. He is often stressed and frustrated and sometimes takes it out on me. I am afraid of asking about things, changing my shifts or generally my job.
“Last month, he ‘pushed’ me to work far more than I really should, because people were ill or had left, and this impacted my studies.”
Several surveys show that young workers struggle with work pressure, unrealistic deadlines and lack of support. The young employee asks: How do I speak up about the poor psychosocial work environment at my work?
From January, employees in Norway will get a new tool when stricter requirements for the psychosocial work environment come into force.
The trade unions are applauding while employers sound warnings against vague demands.
Håkon Hægeland, the leader of Parat UNG, hopes the change in the law will make it easier for young people to speak up.
“In my experience, the psychosocial work environment is what employers take the least seriously. They may have great initiatives and staff handbooks, but they rarely follow up in practice,” he says.
In our theme on the psychosocial work environment, Hægeland talks about where his engagement comes from and what it takes for young people to enjoy working life.
In Sweden, the requirements came earlier. Their Work Environment Act was amended as far back as March 2016 to include the organisational and social work environment.
Nearly ten years later, Ulrich Stoetzer, a doctor and psychologist at the Swedish Work Environment Authority, says:
“We haven’t seen as much change as we would have liked.”
Magnus Åkerström at the Institute for Stress Medicine also highlights the challenge:
“There are many good initiatives, but they produce little real effect.”
The institute has published a report identifying ten obstacles that stand in the way of managers working effectively to create a good psychosocial work environment.
According to Norway’s National Institute of Occupational Health (STAMI), 15 per cent of all sick leave is linked to psychosocial factors at work. This costs both people and organisations dearly.
Nevertheless, we keep talking more about safety shoes and helmets than mental health.
I remember a manager who once told me:
“I have seen that you are not doing too well, but I don’t know how to talk to you about it.”
The manager meant well but lacked the language to address the difficult issue. It was a short conversation. We never moved on, and I left that job not long after.
And this was a long time before I reached menopause!
Why do I mention just that? Because:
Nearly one in eight women leaves working life when she reaches menopause – often because the workplace lacks the knowledge and understanding to accommodate the symptoms that many experience.
This, according to surveys from England, Canada and the USA.
In Denmark, work on the issue has just started. The economic loss is estimated to be four billion Danish kroner (€535m) a year due to inadequate support and adaptation.
“I was having one or two hot flushes an hour, day and night. High-level business meetings are not designed for that,” says Pernille Knudsen, a senior executive in Danish business.
She emphasises that good solutions require openness but also acknowledges that it is still difficult for managers to talk with female employees about menopause.
A good psychosocial work environment does not happen by itself. It requires clear leadership, systematic work, and a culture that puts care for employees on the agenda.
Because in the long run, there’s little point in serving waffles on Fridays – if no one dares to talk about what is really difficult.
Happy reading!
